


Back to You

by Ethereal_Wishes



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-02
Updated: 2018-04-02
Packaged: 2019-04-17 02:38:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 999
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14178723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ethereal_Wishes/pseuds/Ethereal_Wishes
Summary: Belle and Rumple are reunited in the Afterlife.





	Back to You

Back To You

A/AN: Rumple and Belle are reunited in the afterlife. 

Rumpelstiltskin slowly felt the darkness draining from his body, transferring to the Guardian – a place it would lay dormant without interference. Alice peered at him with concerned green eyes, feeling the power course through her. She'd been the Guardian all along– conceived from the best and worst individuals – a man which had selflessly laid his vengeful ways aside to raise her, and a witch hell-bent on everyone's demise. She was a worthy host to contend with the power. 

He reached up to caress her cheek gently. "It'll be alright, Tilly. I know you'll make a worthy Guardian," he sputtered. Rumpelstiltskin could feel his life swiftly ebbing. He knew it was only a matter of time before he completely withered away.

Tears gathered in her eyes as she laid her head on his chest. "Stop calling me Tilly. You know it isn't my real name," she countered. 

"You're simultaneously Tilly and Alice to me – the daughter I never had." He couldn't help but chuckle, though it caused him great pain. He surmised all of his ribs had been broken from the attack, but at least he'd managed to ward Gothel away while he and Tilly made the transfer of power. Gothel had wanted to become the Guardian herself and use the Dark One's powers for evil. But the Guardian's job was to balance both the light and the darkness, and Alice was the only one capable of such potential.

"I'll miss you, Rumple," she sobbed, clenching at his bloodstained shirt.

He coughed hard, clenching his jaw in an attempt to stifle back the pain. "Farewell isn't forever. We'll meet again, on the other side," he mumbled before closing his eyes to meet the blackness. He could hear Tilly's screams echoing within his subconscious as his life force waned, eventually dissipating all together. 

When he awoke, he wasn't aware of time. A hundred more years could have easily passed, and he wouldn't have known it. He hazily gazed up at the ceiling, feeling a tinge of familiarity. His body felt new, like the youthful state it'd been when he was merely a teen. He stretched out his ligaments, testing them.

Though his magic was gone, his bum leg didn't feel constrained. His mind was clearer than it had been in ages – no longer a slave to the vile Dark One's demands and musings. All was quiet. He sat up, realizing he was laying on a downy, goose feather mattress. He glanced down at his skin; Pink, pristine flesh greeted him. His skin was young, no longer weathered and wrinkled by the ill effects of time. 

It finally registered within his brain that the room he currently occupied was identical to his own back in the Dark Castle. He inhaled the fresh, clean air deeply, scooting out of bed. He soon realized where he was. This wasn't the gloomy castle he'd dwelled in back in the Enchanted Forest. No, this place was full of light, making his soul feel revitalized. 

He sauntered towards the door, his heart beating timorously. As he peeked out, he noted the soundless corridors. However his heart knew where to turn. He sprinted down the hall, his legs nary growing tired or his lungs pleading for oxygen. He sensed her presence immediately when he entered the grand ballroom. 

Ethereal white clouds surrounded her, and the floor was crystal blue, reminiscent of a crisp, cloudless sky. His feet gravitated towards her. She appeared as young and innocent as the day he'd secured his deal with her Father – the best and most costly one he'd ever made. Nothing rivaled her value, including the power he'd clutched onto fruitlessly for centuries. As if on cue, she turned, meeting his gaze. Her eyes were bluer than any hue he'd ever witnessed on Earth. Everything was more heightened and profound here in the After Life. 

"Welcome home, Rumple. How I've missed you," she replied in her alluring accent, closing the distance between them. He shuddered as she reached up to caress his face – her skin supple and fragrant as he'd remembered. 

"I found my way back to you, sweetheart," he choked out, instinctively crushing her to his chest. 

"I always knew you would, Rumple. Our paths were forever destined to cross again. Not even death can separate an eternal love like ours," she whispered ardently within his ear.

He sobbed harder as she rubbed soothing circles along his backside. "I was so afraid I would fail you and that we'd be forever parted."

A watery chuckle escaped her lips as she pulled away from him, grasping his hands tightly in hers. "But you didn't, and now that you're here, it's time for you to be free from your anguish, completely. There's no room for any of that here. You're home, and time nor any other constraint will ever separate us again," she reassured him. 

"I'm home," he whispered with realization, feeling all of his insecurities dissipate. 

"Yes, welcome home, my love," she beamed radiantly, leaning in to capture his lips in a heartfelt kiss, stealing away the rest of his doubts. 

He gazed at her, his eyes full of wonder. "Bae, where is he!?"

"He'll be here for dinner tonight. I told him you would be arriving today," she grinned. 

"Wait, how, no, never mind. It doesn't matter," he chuckled, relinquishing his desire to know how she knew of his impending arrival.

"Dance with me?" she held a gloved hand out to him invitingly. 

"It would be, my pleasure," he remarked, taking her hand, pulling her within his arms, and dipping her backwards. Rumpelstiltskin held his wife close, tears springing to his eyes, but no longer tears of sadness. They'd been replaced by tears of joy, for he was finally home – to live in eternal bliss with the ones he loved.

A/AN: It probably won't go this way, but I couldn't help but put my personal spin on it.


End file.
